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2B – Daily News – Tuesday, March 29, 2011 2011 Athletics Preview Oakland Athletics OAKLAND (AP) — The Oak- land Athletics only have to look across San Francisco Bay to see what can happen when a team adds a few veteran bats to a young and talented starting rotation. Now the A's have to hope that additions like Hideki Matsui, David DeJesus and Josh Willing- ham can do as much for them as Aubrey Huff, Cody Ross and Pat Burrell did for the World Series champion Giants just a year ago. "We have a good team," man- ager Bob Geren said. "The offsea- son was fun because every time we acquired somebody, via trade like DeJesus or a free agent like Matsui, it felt like with every building block we kept getting stronger and stronger." Geren compared the moves his team made to the transformation the Giants underwent last year, when a few under-the-radar moves turned one of the league's worst offenses into one good enough to make Tim Lincecum, Matt Cain and Co. world champions. "The extra pieces of offense along with what they already had propelled them into the playoffs and the World Series," Geren said. "I guess you could make a parallel with what we acquired this winter and adding a few more pieces of offense." Oakland finished 11th in the AL last year in runs scored, and second-to-last in homers and slug- ging as the lack of production from their outfield was a major reason the team that had the best ERA from its starting staff in the majors ended up finishing .500 instead of playing deep into Octo- ber. That led to the trades that brought in DeJesus and Willing- ham as the starting corner outfield- ers and the one-year, $4.25 million deal to sign Matsui as the A's new designated hitter. General manager Billy Beane also added depth to the bullpen by acquiring four-time All-Star closer Brian Fuentes and hard-throwing Grant Balfour as set-up men for two-time All-Star Andrew Bailey. "We've got a bullpen put together where the game is — in GIANTS (Continued from page 1B) Pat Burrell joined San Francisco in early June after signing a minor league deal following his release by Tampa Bay. He re-signed this year for a bargain $1 mil- lion to get another chance in this close-knit clubhouse. Then, there’s Ross, the unlikely postseason hero claimed off waivers from Florida on Aug. 22. ‘‘It’s going to be nice to have them all for a full year,’’ Bochy said. Ross is back on a $6.3 million, one-year contract ready to resume where he left off as NL championship series MVP. He drove in 10 MCT file photo Gio Gonzalez is one of the young arms the Oakland Athletics are hoping brings them Giants-like success. all seriousness — almost five innings for a starter," said Dallas Braden, whose perfect game against Tampa Bay last May was the highlight of the 2010 season. "With the options we have lined up there, that's ridiculous. When we can put up runs and add some arms to the mix, that's when our chances get a lot better. That's all stuff that's still on paper. It's all great in theory. We have all the components. We need to put them all together, though, and see how they run." While the club made moves to upgrade the offense and add depth to the bullpen this offseason, the strength of the team remains a runs during the playoffs, two in the World Series. Relievers Javier Lopez and Ramon Ramirez also came aboard midseason. ‘‘Obviously we’re not going to be as much under- dogs as we were last year. Going into the last series I think people thought San Diego still might be able to pull it out,’’ Ross said. ‘‘Obviously in the division series the Braves were favored and then the Phillies, then the Rangers. We were the underdog pretty much the whole time. I doubt if that’s going to be the case this year but we can still have that chip on our shoulder that people are trying to take a run at us and we have to defend. We’re all on board with that.’’ starting rotation that features four players age 27 or younger who had an ERA of 3.50 or better last season. That gave Oakland exactly one-quarter of the AL pitchers who achieved that mark in at least 100 innings. Trevor Cahill made the All-Star team in his second big-league sea- son, going 18-8 with a 2.97 ERA and receiving three votes for the Cy Young award. Despite those lofty numbers, he might not even be the A's most talented pitcher. Brett Anderson was the more heralded prospect and went 7-6 with a 2.80 ERA in 19 starts despite two DL stints with left elbow inflammation. Sandoval and pitcher Barry Zito probably have the most to prove. Sandoval showed up at spring training down about 30 pounds to a fit 240 after a rigorous offseason workout regimen. The free-swinging slugger batted .268 with just 13 home runs and 63 RBIs in his second full season in the big leagues only a year after he was among the last play- ers left off the All-Star team. Sandoval committed 13 errors and grounded into an NL-high 26 double plays. He played in only six of the Giants’ postseason games, including one appearance in the five-game World Series win over Texas. Zito didn’t play at all. The left-hander was left off the roster for all three postseason Gio Gonzalez was 15-9 with a 3.23 ERA and got better as the year went on, posting a 2.59 ERA in the second half of the season. Then there's the old man of the group, Braden, who struggled a bit after his perfect game but still is an effective pitcher. "They're so talented," catcher Kurt Suzuki said. "I don't think they realize and other people real- ize how special they are. But they have to keep trying to get better. Who knows what they are capable of?" While Oakland's rotation gets far less hype than the ones in San Francisco and Philadelphia, the A's starters had the lowest ERA in rounds, and now the 2002 AL Cy Young Award winner is eager for a fresh start in year 5 of his $126 million, seven-year deal. Zito finished 9-14 and failed to reach 10 wins for the first time since his rookie season in 2000. His 4.15 ERA was the fourth-highest of his career. He went 1-8 with a 6.72 ERA over his last 11 outings and 10 starts and only had one victory in his last 15 appearances. The stretch included a career- worst nine-game losing streak from July 21 to Sept. 14. The way No. 3 starter Matt Cain sees it, last season is now history — the ups and the downs. This one will be scrutinized: A camera crew will be following the club the majors last season at 3.47. But the Giants and Phillies both have pitched deep into Octo- ber, which is what the group in Oakland might need to do in order to get the notoriety it deserves. "It feels like we're still out there trying to make a playoff run," Gonzalez said. "We still want to produce and do our stuff now. Obviously we're still the underdogs. We're still kind of in the shadows with every other team now. We're just try- ing to come out a little bit and show what we've been working with. Working with the starting rotation and trying to be a part of it is pretty exciting." closely for a television series about the reigning champs. ‘‘I think we’ve got to in a way carry some of the stuff we did last year with us but I think we’ve also got to wipe the slate clean,’’ Cain said. ‘‘A lot of teams are different and we’ll definitely be a dif- ferent team this year with a lot of the same guys and we’ll have to start over as well.’’ Even Huff has a fresh approach after receiving a new $22 million, two-year contract this winter. He announced early in spring training he was retiring the red rally thong that he believes helped him in 2010. He hit .290 with a team-lead- ing 26 home runs and 86 RBIs while playing in 157 games, then batted .268 with one homer and eight RBIs in the postseason. ‘‘Just play baseball this year and try to keep the antics at home,’’ Huff said, noting the notorious under- garment is back at his house in Florida. Bochy, for one, will appreciate that focus while also acknowledging it’s the variety of personalities on his club that makes things click so well. ‘‘I think when you get a taste of it the way they did you’re going to have it even more,’’ Bochy said. ‘‘You realize how much fun it was and how much the fans appreciated what happened. That makes you even want to do it again more.’’ Boxing, soccer among ways NFL players keeping busy By JAIME ARON AP Football Writer Jimmy Clausen and Tom Zbikowski both saw the NFL work stoppage com- ing and were ready to fill the void in their schedule. Clausen, the Panthers quarterback, went back to college, seeking the 15 credits he needs to gradu- ate. Zbikowski, a safety for the Ravens, went back to boxing — yes, boxing. Zbikowski is the first to laugh at his switch from one violent sport to another, but he’s serious about this. He’s fought twice in the last three weeks, in Las Vegas and Atlantic City, N.,J., and won both. He’s already hooked up with the big- time promoters at Top Rank and just last week Hall of Fame trainer Emanuel Steward took him on as a client. He couldn’t have done any of it in a regular NFL offseason. ‘‘I finished the last year of my contract and there’s a lockout — what perfect timing for me,’’ said Zbikowski, a former Gold- en Gloves fighter whose first pro bout was in 2006, while he was in college. ‘‘Not needing permission from the people that are paying to play makes it pos- sible. There is no way I could’ve passed up on the opportunity. It just opened the door for my other career.’’ Free time isn’t piling up quite yet for NFL players because March is always part of their offseason. But since there’s no telling when they will be back at work, and since only so many hours can be spent at the gym, guys are finding all sorts of ways to keep busy. Some are delving into existing businesses, projects and charities, such as Bills safety Jairus Byrd expand- ing a program to recognize random acts of kindness. Others are cultivating new interests and activities, such as Steelers receiver Hines Ward taking a turn on ‘‘Dancing With The Stars.’’ ‘‘Everyone has hobbies and things they like to do,’’ said Bengals receiver Chad Ochocinco, who rekindled a childhood love for soccer by getting a tryout with Sporting Kansas City of the MLS. He did so well, they let him stick around for a reserve game on Monday. Agents and marketing folks are encouraging play- ers to stay active — ‘‘to remain relevant,’’ as described by publicist Tom Savage, who works with Maximum Sports, the agency headed by Eugene Parker. Byrd is among their clients, and he’s taken their advice by building on the ‘‘Louder Than Words’’ campaign he began last sea- son. The program is all about recognizing people for good deeds. Volunteers in Buffalo are armed with ‘‘Byrd Seed’’ such as free movie tickets and are sup- posed to reward strangers seen going out of their way to help others. All the movie tickets have been given out, so Byrd is trying to drum up another sponsor; he’s hoping for an ice cream parlor. ‘‘Any time you’re not doing anything, you want to be productive,’’ said Byrd, who has been posting more often on his organization’s Facebook and Twitter accounts. ‘‘We still don’t know what’s going to hap- pen with the lockout. It’s kind of like a soap opera. You’re always concerned, wanting to keep up to date with what’s going on. But you have to just go about your normal business.’’ The lockout began a lit- tle more than two weeks ago. Between ongoing court cases and the chance for negotiations to resume, there could be a new collec- tive bargaining agreement before players miss any paychecks. However, with each passing day, it becomes more likely that they will miss spring and summer gatherings, like voluntary and mandatory workouts, organized team activities (OTAs) and minicamps. Even the start of training camp is in question. Some guys can’t wait. Cowboys receiver Troy Bergeron and Browns receiver Rod Windsor recently signed with Arena Football League teams. Neither was a lock to make the NFL, and both are for- mer winners of the AFL rookie of the year award, so their decisions make sense. So does Zbikowski’s return to the ring. ‘‘Boxing is what I’ve been doing in my football offseason all my life, since middle school,’’ he said. ‘‘Some guys like playing pickup games of basketball; this is what I do.’’ After winning his debut bout in ’06, Zbikowski put pro boxing on hold because football paid better. He was a third-round pick out of Notre Dame in 2008, and has been a solid player for the Ravens the last three seasons. ‘‘It was starting to feel like an eternity to when I was going to be able to fight again,’’ he said. ‘‘The NFL is year-round. I was young in my career and needed too much development to think I could go to boxing for a few months and come back to football.’’ But now there’s no foot- ball — and, technically, no team since he’s a restricted free agent. It was the open- ing he needed to get back in the ring. He won with a first- round TKO in Las Vegas earlier this month. This past Saturday, he was on an undercard in Atlantic City, N.J., and won a decision over a guy who outweighed him by 20 pounds. He’s tentatively scheduled to fight again in April, near Dallas. ‘‘Most up-and-coming fighters have 10 fights a year, almost one a month,’’ Zbikowski said. ‘‘I’m just trying to squeeze that into a five-month offseason.’’ ——— AP Sports Writer Doug Tucker in Kansas City contributed.